Gregorius' mass 

This drawing by Abraham van Diepenbeeck depicts Pope Gregory the Great celebrating mass. Look at the figure of Christ appearing above the altar, surrounded by instruments of the Passion. These include the column of flagellation and the ladder of the Descent from the Cross. The iconography of the instruments of the Passion can be traced back to the early Middle Ages, appearing on reliquaries and in illuminated manuscripts. These symbols served as mnemonic devices, reminding the faithful of Christ's suffering. Like actors in a Greek drama, they evoke an emotional response, a catharsis. We are drawn into the Pope's vision, experiencing the mass through his eyes. Observe also, the motif of the ladder. This symbol appears in the dreams of the Old Testament patriarch Jacob, and it resonates, even today, as a potent symbol of ascension and revelation. It's a powerful expression of spiritual elevation, a concept that has persisted through time, transformed, but never erased from the collective consciousness.